The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-03-08

board. he was absent all OF
that time in Arkansas, devoting
his whole time and attention to his private bust
But he drew regularly his salary of $50
per month q membe- of the board. and on one |
occasion ne so anxious to receive it that he
requested Dr. Fletcher to advance it to him out
of the superintendent contingent fund The /
committee finds that he was not entitled to this
salary, and that DR.. Harrison guilty of |
gross negligence in not demanding his resgna- |
tion and in not bringing the facts to the atten-
ton of the Attorney general. The committee is /
of the opinion that the Mellen rebate of $64 ",
collected by Gapen, was never paid 20 the super
ntendent of the asylum, but that it was appro- |
priated by him to his own personal and private |
use.
The committee further finds that the board Of |
trustees has permitted inferior and unwhole- |
some food to remain at the institution after their
attention had been called to the fact; that the |
board has insisted upon the retention of j. S.
Hall as chief accountant, book keeper and store
keeper, although he is absolutely without any
qualification for the responsible position which |
he holds; that the board reduced the salary of
Mr. Roth, assistant steward, about the time he
was protesting against the reception of inferior
goods from dealers and that the reduction was
a punishment for his insistance upon the rejec
ton of articles that did not come up to the re-
quirement of the contracts. After this investi-
cation commenced the board restored Mr.
Roth's salary to its original figure.
The committee says that Mr.. Stacey, the me-
chanical engineer in charge of the new boilers,
was discharged before they were completed, be-
cause he said rotten iron was being put into
them. The board forced him to make the esti-
mates to paw the contractors. The board has
! ignored almost all of the suggestions made by
| Dr. Fletcher looking to the improvement of the
management Of the institution. The last pub
| lished report Of the board false in that it
showed balance much larger than actually
| existed by reason of no account being taken of
| the unpaid current liabilities of the institution
on the 3lst day of October. 1886. The commit
| tee also find that DR.. Harrison attempted to sup
| press testimony by offering to procure place
| for one witness. and to employ an attorney who
| had been subpGnaed as witness. The COM
| mittee concludes that this branch of the investi-
CATION shows the unfitness and incapacity of the
| trustees to manage great institution like the
! Insane Asylum.
| The report finds that the testimony hereto
| tore published bears out the incompetency of
many of the employees, that they were appointed
| for political service and that no Republican
could get position. In reference to cruelty to
patients the committee finds that there is good
| reason for their numerous complaints in this re-
| gard. and that the difficulty of detection and
| bringing to light many instances of inhumanity
is due to that partisan system which was deilo-
erately adopted by the present board of trustees.
| To this system must also be chargeable the
| thirty-fve Opponents recorded in the reports of
| the institution, among which must be enumer
ated the escape of Jonathan Allen. the uncertain
| fate OF Mrs Dallas aud the death Of Captain
| knorr.
| In the purchase of supplies the committee
| finds that the highest prices were paid for in
| ferior articles; that favoritism was shown to
| dealers, particularly to John E. Sullivan, whose
| bids were higher than more reputable dealers,
and that contract with Duffy for butter. eggs
| and poultry was annuled and given to Sullivan,
| although the latters prices were higher. The
| intimate personal relations between Sullivan
| and DR.. Harrison also detailed. The com
| mtree concludes that the system of purchasing
supplies is wasteful and extravaganza that the
! friends of the trustees are much more
fortunate in getting contracts than persons
|
of the goods they offer to furnish and the low
ness of the bids for the same. In August and
September the butter furnished for the depart
ment of women is reported daily as uniformly
bad. The several instances when the superin-
tendents attention was called to the butter,
which was either very inferior or bad.
that of the October supply, 1886, being infected
with maggots. is given. The August butter
had, also, shippers in it. The committee finds
that Mr.. Hall, the store-keeper, knew of this
maggoty butter, and that he paid no attention
to the protests of DR.. Fletcher and Mr.. Roth,
though some OF the butter had been sent back.
but not until it had been received by Mr.. Hall
and partially used. One lot of butter was fur
nished by Mr. Sullivan and another by Mr..
Krauss. Inferior goods, including groceries which
were generally of poor quality, were accepted
over DR.. Fletchers protest. or were sent back to
the hospital after he had had them returned to
the dealers Mr. Gapen on several occasions or
dered inferior goods of Kristlein & Schrader to
be received and kent. Rotten fish were also de-
livered and used Within the last two years a
number of hogs have died at the asylum from
cholera. and hogs were slaughtered for the table
out of the same pen in which several were lying
dead from disease. Tainted meat was supplied
to patients, and the trustees must have known
it, although they made effert to prevent it.
Food was very poorly cooked. The new boilers
were made of rotten iron, reckless extrava-
! gance was followed in their construction, and
they being unsafe endangered the lives of
, the inmates and the property of the
! State The contractors were paid full price of
their contract for them. $0 900. The last report
of the trustees claims balance on ha nd of $l3,-
, 243 80 in the maintenance fund Oct. 81 1856.
!, when there should have been charged against it
over $40. 900 unliquidated indebtedness, of which
!, no mention is made in the report. The commit
, tee says that the financial showing of the board
in this respect is calculated to deceive the pub
lie, and that the system of book keeping at the
! asylum is defective in Tot showing accurately
and succinctly the liabilities of the institution at
any given time. In reference to politics the re-
port shows that money was collected from en-
ployeS for political purposes. and that the insti-
tuition is run more as political machine than
ANYTHING else
The store room books have been mutilated by
having pages torn out of It, and it is filled with
erasures and interlneations The unwritten
n and i!l-defned rule against the of intox
. eating drinks is constantly violated, and The
. trustees have failed to make and enforce any
| rigid rules as to this habit. The abolition of re
q ing of mn and wife on some of the male
: | wards, causing saiutary effect, and the estab
! lishment of school fos the patients, have beer
), brought about by the superintendent DR.
= Fletcher.
! The report closes with recommendation fo1
a the immediate removal of the present trustee s
!. of the Insane Hospital. and proceedings should
= sSs instituted by the Attorney general TO,
q that purpose. The best results cannot be
= obtained until the OF tuo asylum i:
. placed in the hands of carefully selected. non
: partisan board of trustees. 1t is also recon
: mended that woman be made one of tn.
. trustees. Applicants for position should be re
! quired to pass rigid examination and the ten
ure of Office should not depend upon tho politca
activity of the employees, who should be prohib